I am a Nutritionist (who counts Carrot Cake as one of my five a day) in London who is stamping stigma out of mental illness. Also interested in all things mental health related.
Follow me on Twitter: @mirandasmurmurs and Instagram: @mirandabunting

Monday, 28 April 2014

I adore will i am - he is very cool. I have blogged about him a couple of times before.The French translated his name literally recently and when I saw this picture on twitter, it made me laugh a lot -

Thursday, 24 April 2014

Well the result of the following little recipe had me completely speechless - it was one of the yummiest things I have ever had.

Scarlett Curtis posted this little video on Instagram and I tried to follow what she did and the result was perfect. She used a Creme Egg, which would be wonderful but I had run out so used Lindt instead...

I think spreading Nutella or peanut butter or anything yummy before they are rolled and put in the oven would make them really scrummy...

Thursday, 17 April 2014

Scarlett Curtis used to blog as the Teenage Granny and a lot of people were very sad when she stopped.But she's back! And I know its going to be as brilliant as before - I can't wait to follow. I met her recently and think she is a real gem.

Monday, 7 April 2014

A few weeks ago, I really enjoyed a 2-part programme on BBC called Famous, Rich and Hungry - it was in aid of Sport Relief. Four wealthy celebrities went into people's homes in the UK and lived off their minuscule budget for a week (something like £1 per person per day? - no joke). Can you imagine having £4 and having to use that to give 3 meals a day to a family of 4 with that money? I can't. I've been meaning to blog about this for a while. Since last week's news that we should be now eating at least 7 portions of fruit / veg a day, I thought now would be a good time to put fingers to keyboard.

One of last week's news headlines was that we should all be eating at least 7 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. This was not news to me - our university lecturers have told us from the start that Five a Day is not enough. The thing is - most of the British public struggle to eat 2 portions of fruit or/and veg a day so how can health professionals / the government expect us to step it up a gear and eat even more greens? I don't think its achievable or realistic. Guess what? I am about to graduate with a degree in Nutrition and not even I always get my 5 a day...! Well sometimes I do, if you include Carrot cake...Rachel Johnson - a super duper author and journalist was one of the "famous and rich" celebs to participate in this programme. She's written about her week here , here and here - she said she didn't see / eat a single piece of greenery during her stay with her 2 families and by the end of the week she was "bloated, exhausted and angry". If there was no money or no food, they didn't eat. It was as simple as that. Many parents went without food in order that their children could eat. Sometimes, they had to go to soup kitchens / food banks. Research shows that the highest rates of obesity are amongst those from the lowest social economic backgrounds - because people spend the little money they have on fast / junk food that is high in sugar and fat and not much else. Rachel found that the cost of 1 swede would have blown her daily budget. She had to beg for 9 p off the street to buy some mince. Fresh food is SO expensive - hence why the family she was with hardly consumed any veg. The child had never seen a leek before.Interestingly - many of the families had Sky TV AND they smoked yet they couldn't afford food... There will be some people out there who do eat Five or more portions of Fruit / Veg a day - and thats great. They will also find ways of doing it without breaking the bank. But not everyone can find the balance of nourishing themselves well without breaking the bank.Most of these people were on benefits - the benefit money should come in the form of food vouchers, credit for electricity / gas - NOT cash for iPads, Sky TV subscriptions etc. Also - other countries have advocated the consumption of many more than five a day before now so why can't we keep up with them? It is horrifying to think that this kind of poverty / malnourishment is happening right here in the UK.This programme has prompted me to visit my local food bank with a few tins of soup - BUT they only like tinned / long lasting stuff - and that includes tinned mashed potato, tinned shepherds pie, tinned EVERYTHING - which, to be honest, is not exactly helping the problem.As a nutritionist and lover of Sport Relief, I was fascinated by this programme - it got me thinking. I don't think we will be seeing an improvement in fruit or veg consumption anytime soon - not least because food prices are always increasing and its hard to changes habits - we are such creatures of habit. The junk food should be expensive and the healthy food should be cheaper - but we source the healthy food from far away and that is party why it costs more. And its much more complicated than that. I can't find episode 1 but here is episode 2 - do watch:

There was this amazing documentary on BBC 1 a couple of weeks ago and I am so so pleased its now on YouTube - I love Joanna Lumley and Will i am - I have blogged about them both (here) and (here). I've even met Joanna! Joanna Lumley meets Will i am - one British National Treasure meets an American International Superstar -

I absolutely ADORE TED talks. There are thousands online to watch and you always learn something from them. They are a good and "educational" way to pass the time. One of the best TED talks I have ever seen sits permanently at the top right hand corner of this blog. Do watch it.This is another fascinating talk - by Neil Harbisson. He was born completely colour blind - everything he sees is grey. Until he learnt to HEAR colour. Yup - thats right. He can listen to colour. Its amazing.I love the way he describes "listening to a Picasso and the supermarket became a nightclub - especially the cleaning aisle! Lady Gaga Salads, choosing clothes because they sound nice...."What he says in the last 60 seconds is particularly meaningful too...

Wednesday, 2 April 2014

I love Twitter - it is one of the best things ever invented - and there are many reasons why.

One of my current reasons why I love it so much is that is the best way to procrastinate and distract myself from revision. I have just seen this picture and love it so much that I had to share it with you -